More to Offer [Finished]

[The Jenn]

Lior stayed as still as he could, almost holding his breath as he watched the effect his words had on her, the flinch as she hunkered close to the ground and didn't move. Her smile was eerie and it made his toes curl, not with disturbance but with guilt. He knew this hurt her. He didn't want to hurt her, no. He just wanted her to leave and stop pulling him from the safety of his cocoon.

"I do mean it, though," he said in a quiet voice that trembled just a little. He'd never been able to sound strong when he needed to, some inner weakness always showing through. "I'll remember you, but... Rhi, I can't stay with you. You can't stay with me. I don't want to be me. It's better this way." Better for him, certainly, even as it broke her into pieces. He reached absently for an inner pocket of his cloak, pausing when his hand met nothing but air and fur. Yes, it wasn't there just then... he'd forgotten. It was always there. He preferred it that way.

"A part of you will always be with me," he said, an attempted platitude serving as his meager defense against the broken tremor of her voice and her muzzle on his feet. One hand reached out and hesitantly caught hold of her wing, the one missing the joint. "This. I will always have this. The rest... it's yours, Rhi. Do what you want. Be with your Queen. Your children. Your weapon. Be yourself. You have all of them. You just... can't have me anymore."

Slowly he withdrew his hand and moved away, took a step back from her. He didn't even notice the smell of the food anymore, despite his body's hunger. With one last long, searching look, he turned around and walked unsteadily in the direction his cloak had gone. When it came back, he knew it would have found new souls to harvest. He had a job to do...

[carcinoGeneticist]

There was a cold truth in his words, a wall that she couldn't avoid. Even if what he was saying wasn't true for her, it was for him, and really - that was all that mattered, especially since he was the one walking away from their relationship. From everything that they'd had together, all the memories.

From her. He was leaving her in favor of what he himself called a curse.

It wasn't fair.

She shook when he took her wing in hand, yelping with surprise at the sudden touch. The feeling of his hand on her body, even if it wasn't a loving touch, made her freeze, her breath hitching in her throat. The things he was saying did nothing at all to aleviate that feeling, and she stared at him with her mouth hanging open slightly. There it was again. Hope. He would be keeping a part of her with him. In her twisted, broken mind, that equated to him remembering her, either a few hours from now or a few years from now, and coming back to find her. "I will," she whispered in that quavering, broken voice, sitting up slightly, but she didn't speak in reply to being herself.

She spoke in reply to always being with him. The rest of them... She knew the truth. She'd lost them the moment she'd stood up and left the court without another word. None of them would ever forgive her. How could she ask them too.

Then he took his hand away and she whimpered, the sadness slipping back into her expression. She stood slowly, her legs shaking beneath her, and watched him turn to walk after the cloak. One foot went forward, then another, and she followed him slowly, her steps as halting and broken as the rest of her felt. He was moving much faster, and it didn't take long at all until she could no longer make out his form in front of her.

Rhiannon sat down and began to cry, feeling her energy and hope leave her.

It was over. He was gone.

~~~

Apocalypse stepped outside and paused for a long moment, staring at the sky. She'd be furious once she was herself again, but he couldn't stay here. He'd walk to her. It would take a few days, and by the time he arrived, she could only hope that she'd have recovered enough to come home with him.

[carcinoGeneticist]

Jenn and Xenon receive 1 token each, to be redeemed in Ashwin's Shoppe. This will automatically be added to your recorded totals in the shoppe. Congratulations, and keep up the good RP!